Forum:The Fifth column drops
I like playing The Fifth Column, but the drops, they're CRAZY. Just BATSHIT INSANE. So much so that it feels like the drops just don't feel legit. And even if they might be considered legit, I get strictly no excitement/sense of achievement/pride out of obtaining them anyways. On a single run i was rewarded with all three level 68 perfect pearlescent shields. I got an (arguably) perfect AR520 Punishing Avenger (Yes, body5/barel5 + Deathly accessory + Punishing Title, the thing is like 570 Damage per shot...). I also got a perfect ZPR1200 Hunter's Jackal. I also found shitload of purples. It's just... It's not the way it should be... I honestly prefer running the armory more than those rewards. At least when I play the Crow's Nest, I feel like I have to work for my rewards, and when I find a good item, I am genuinely excited about it. So yeah, who else has done The Fifth Column, and how do they feel about the drops? Don't get me wrong, I think it is great fun, its just the drops... unbalanced. 12:08, May 27, 2011 (UTC) :check your completion percentage with the character you are using to run the column. with 100% completion, or thereabouts the enemies should be "batshit insanely" hard, ~level 74, (on par with the nest). i can't answer to the drop quality, but, at my completion percentage, i can solo the nest all day but i can't venture out the door at the column without a friend or two to help out. the fifth column is incredibly challenging, even more so than the crow's nest, and the increased difficulty lends satisfaction to whatever drops i can find and hold onto. 16:59, May 27, 2011 (UTC) : :Yeah I've never completed the fifth column. It's really just maddening to try and play it as a Hunter. There's a good sniper's nest on the opposite side of the entrance to the battlegrounds, but getting there is a nightmare. And enemies will spawn either right on top of me, or across the way on the little outcroppings that are in the cliffside. 17:05, May 27, 2011 (UTC) I wonder if the people who built the 3PDLCs know the % chance of a legit pearl drop in Knoxx... :there's also the question of what version of TFC you have installed. v2.0 created more frequent and continuous spawns of baddies. this latest version allows no rest between missions and the difficulty is ramped up even more. 17:30, May 27, 2011 (UTC) ::with v2: continuous spawn. Playing as a scorpio specced Heavy Gunner: single player one man machine. Completion is near 100% (for PT2, PT1 is more like 80%) (Some missions I don't turn in on purpose; btw, do they show completion percentage?). The only mobs that really gave me trouble were Rakinishu and Mothrakk, which I was forced to lure to the spawn. King Wee Wee takes forever... Mobs are about 72-73. Maybe 74, I didn't look too much. Hard, but not un-manageable. Maybe it's easier solo (for a solo specced soldier)? 18:50, May 27, 2011 (UTC) :quite possible. the only runs i have made on the column have been with 2 - 3 players, presumably upping the difficulty levels. i also tend to use builds designed to present a challenge. i.e. the last successful run i made on the column was with a soldier, spec'ced for rifle damage, carrying ajax's spear variants and wee wee's booster shield, with 1 - 2 teammates. i went down a lot. perhaps increasing your own difficulty will lend increased satisfaction to your conquests? :i do not know where to find completion percentages. instead i'll take my berserker into the column and compare the enemy levels. brick hasn't yet completed PT2 (or PT1, methinks). 19:01, May 27, 2011 (UTC) ::confirmed effect of less than 100% completion on the column. went in with brick on the "find steele" mission and the bad guys were level 69 - 71. after "talking to tannis" the baddies ramped up to 74. 06:46, May 29, 2011 (UTC) ::I like upping the difficulty too, in particular, by limiting my elemental use. For starters, Hellfire, Defiler, Crux, Volcano? Banned. All my weapons must be normal damage. If I really need elemental help, then I have to rely on 'nades, and scorpio... ::That said, with supply drop and Grenadier, Roland can dish out an obscene amount of grenades and think nothing of it. "Oh? You're behind cover in a house? Excuse me while I chuck 7 bouncing betties in there... They'll be regenerated back in about 15 seconds". Also, while the scorpio does suck ass in terms of raw damage, it can dish out serious amounts of elemental: A single Corrosive Scorpio turret can single handedly take out about 3 badass rocketeers. So yeah, I can still set everything ablaze, but I have to be a little more creative than "Point an click"... 21:32, May 27, 2011 (UTC)